How does purchasing intangible services online influence the travel to consume these services? A focus on a Chinese context

Abstract

A considerable number of empirical studies have explored the effects of information & communication technologies (ICT) on travel in recent years. In particular, the most attention has been paid to whether the use of ICT increases or decreases trip frequency (i.e., substitution or complementarity effects). However, the subject of whether or how travel distance and mode choice are altered by ICT (i.e., modification effects) has almost been ignored. Against this background, using data collected in Beijing, China, this paper aims to explore how purchasing intangible services (e.g., eating out at restaurants, hairdressing, and visits to zoos and movie theatres) online alters the distance and mode choice of the travel to consume these services. The results suggest that due to online purchases of intangible services, people tend to travel farther to consume these services. Consequently, 25.4% of online buyers change their travel mode choices from walking or cycling (i.e., nonmotorized modes) to public transit, private cars, or taxis (i.e., motorized modes). These findings confirm the existence of modification effects of ICT on travel. Additionally, a stepwise multinomial logistic regression model and a stepwise binomial logistic regression model are used to detect the factors influencing changes in travel distance and mode choices, respectively. The regression outcomes suggest that people who have lower living costs or feel more satisfied with online purchases are more likely to increase their travel distances and to change from nonmotorized modes to motorized modes.

Impacts of online shopping on travel demand: a systematic review

“…Similar substitution findings were made by Hiselius et al (2015), where online shoppers travelled shorter distances by car but there were no differences for other modes. Both articles by Shi, Cheng et al (2020, using the same data, found a modification effect where users of online intangible services (e.g. eating out, visiting moving theatres) travelled longer one-way distances in general.…”

“…This is consistent with Bjerkan et al (2020), who found that online shoppers were more likely to walk or bike. Shi, Cheng et al (2020), studying intangible services, found the opposite: shoppers switched from walking and bicycling to car and public transport. Etminani-Ghasrodashti and Hamidi (2020) showed that online shopping is negatively associated with car and public transport use for shopping travel.…”

“…Fourth, the type of good may moderate the relationship between online shopping and travel. Only a few studies have considered multiple product types, such as clothing, media, food, and groceries (Dias et al, 2020a;Shi et al, 2019;, or intangible services (Shi, Cheng et al, 2020;, and pointed out the variability introduced by this. Ordering groceries online may substitute for grocery shopping travel, whereas ordering clothes online may complement trips to the mall.…”

Impacts of teleworking and online shopping on travel: a tour-based analysis

“…One study (Bhat et al 2003 ) with longitudinal data also found a combination of the two effects (i.e., substitution and complementarity). A few studies found modification effects (Shi et al 2020a , 2020b ) when measuring changes in travel distances of online shoppers. Some studies also indicated the co-presence of multiple effects, such as complementarity and substitution (Etminani-Ghasrodashti and Hamidi 2020 ; Farag et al 2007 ).…”

The influence of the built environment on online purchases of intangible services: Examining the mediating role of online purchase attitudes

“…When the internet is unavailable, they usually face more difficulties in acquiring service information or partaking trips to consume them. When purchasing services online, they can easily access massive service information and plan travel routes via the internet (Farag et al, 2006;Shi et al, 2020a), thus making the purchasing process and consuming trips effortless. Consequently, non-urban consumers are expected to have more gain from online buying compared to their counterparts in urban areas, hence making more frequent online purchases likely (Anderson et al, 2003).…”